Monthly Archives: March 2011

This cute dog is hanging out at 12th and Massachusetts without a leash. Neighbor Joseph writes, “Can you help finding an owner for this dog? He hangs out around 12th and Massachusetts. He seems to be friendly and I am sure he lives near by so if anyone knows who he belongs to, I have an extra leash!”

Seattle does have a leash law which requires dogs to be on-leash at all times when on public property, except at off-leash areas. There is an off-leash area on North Beacon Hill at Dr. Jose Rizal Park.

Photo by Anne Norman via Creative CommonsCompost Days in Seattle begins on Friday, April 1 with local activities including garden-building and free compost.

The day starts at 10 a.m. with a garden-building project for the Hohlfeld family at S. Bayview and 16th Avenue S., in conjunction with Spring into Bed, a non-profit organization that constructs gardens for low-income families so they can grow organic food in their own backyard.

Immediately afterward there will be a compost giveaway at El Centro de la Raza, across the street at 2524 16th Avenue S. City of Seattle residents can pick up one free bag of compost between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., while supplies last. (We hear there are 500 bags.) There will also be coupons available for compost and Green Kitchen Kits. You can get some of the coupons online, if you prefer:

Sign on a fence on S. Lander St. Photo by Wendi.This cheerful sign invited neighbors to the community planting party on Beacon Avenue S. at S. Forest St. last weekend. Photo by Jason.This chart is hanging in the furnace room of a 1930s-vintage house on S. Lander St. Photo by Wendi.A sign welcoming guests to the new ROCKiT space location in the Garden House. Photo by Melissa Jonas.

The El Centro de la Raza parking lot is a step closer to existence. On March 21, the Seattle City Council unanimously passed an ordinance that allows parking lots of up to 100 spaces as interim uses on sites “occupied or owned by established institutions within a quarter mile of a light rail station, including the North Beacon Hill light rail station.” Earlier proposed versions of the ordinance limited all lots to 40 spaces.

“Parking, especially at places like El Centro de la Raza on Beacon Hill, will serve as a handy resource for game day fans.”

El Centro has expressed an intent to put 80 parking spaces on the lot directly south of their building, which is located across South Lander Street from Beacon Hill Station.

The ordinance also allows parking lots of up to 40 spaces on other properties within Southeast Seattle station areas, however, this part of the ordinance excludes the Beacon Hill station area.

The City Council’s press release on the ordinance quotes Councilmember Sally J. Clark: “We want to see these lifeless, empty parking spaces serve a use, at least until the economy rebounds. Allowing longer-term parking, particularly at places like El Centro de la Raza on Beacon Hill, will serve as a handy resource for game-day fans hoping to avoid parking around Safeco Field or Qwest Field.”

The ordinance will not allow permanent parking lots; permits for the lots will expire after three years.

The Beacon Hill Merchants Association is hiring a part-time Business District Coordinator. Here’s the job posting they sent us:

The Beacon Hill Merchants Association is a newly created organization of storefront and home-based businesses on Beacon Hill in Seattle. We are seeking a part-time Business District Coordinator to assist in creating relationships with property and business owners, building a diverse membership and beginning implementation of a comprehensive business district strategy for Beacon Hill.Continue reading Beacon Hill Merchants hiring Business District Coordinator→

The “Extreme Readers” reading team from Van Asselt Elementary School is among 10 teams of fourth- and fifth-graders who are competing in the city final of the 2011 Global Reading Challenge on March 29. The winning team from this event will face teams from Fraser Valley, BC and Coquitlam, BC in a video conference final at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 15.

More than 2,500 fourth- and fifth- graders from more than 40 Seattle Public Schools studied 10 books to prepare for the Challenge. Along with Van Asselt, schools represented in the city finals include Adams, B.F. Day, Bryant, Concord International, John Muir, Roxhill, Sanislo, Thurgood Marshall, and View Ridge.

The city final event is at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 29 at the Central Library, 1000 Fourth Avenue, in the Microsoft Auditorium on Level 1. It is free and open to the public. Doors will open at 6:45 p.m. Parking is available in the Central Library garage for $5 after 5 p.m.

I have never been the long-distance bike riding type. The spandex thing is silly, the leg shaving too high maintenance. Instead I have taken a utilitarian approach to two-wheeled self propulsion. In many instances it is just the easiest way to get around. But I have begun to notice that the more I ride the more I enjoy it just for the sake of riding a bike. Turns out it is pretty fun.

On Sunday I rode around Mercer Island for my first time. Though the ride was about 16 miles, I was having so much fun, that it felt like 5. Big water and mountain views, few cars (except for noisy I-90), tall trees, cool air, good company. I will map it next time for those who have yet to try it. But today’s post is about something else altogether great: Pizza!

Things are abuzz on Beacon Hill about the new bar at the old ROCKiT space and the Bar del Corso Pizza spot. Pizza bar and beer bar, yum! Both these spots will be along Beacon Avenue and easily accessible by foot and bike, especially if you use the newly proposed bike boulevard along 17th/18th ave. But alas, we must wait months for this fun to start. So until then, here is a safe route to the very near and very delicious Mio Posto in Mt Baker. This spot is great for its Irwin’s Pastries and brick oven pizza! If you are looking for something a little different try this safe route to All Purpose Pizza in Leschi. They serve a Pagliacci-esque pie with a smile. After all this pizza you will need that ride to Mercer Island to clear the arteries, but don’t worry, it goes by in a flash.

Perhaps you prefer to get your hands dirty. On Sunday, you can do that at one of two community work parties. The Lewis Park work party is from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Lewis Park, 12th Avenue South and Golf Drive South. Help plant native plants or do other things the park needs. Tools, gloves, water, and refreshments are provided. This is a weekly event.

It’s been a while since we posted Beacon Bits, so we’ve got some catching up to do. With no further ado, here goes!

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Beacon Hill International Elementary School will have a new principal in the fall of 2011. The current principal, Dr. Susie Murphy, is retiring and will be replaced by Kelly Aramaki, currently the principal at John Stanford International School (JSIS). While at JSIS last year, Aramaki won the $25,000 Milken Educator Award, given to promising young educators. (See this article by BHB news partners The Seattle Times for more information.) For the last two years, JSIS was named as a “School of Distinction” by the State Office of the Superintendent, an honor to mark schools that score in the top five percent on standardized math and reading tests.

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Bounce your way down to Jefferson Community Center on Friday, April 8 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. for Bounce Fest! The event promises a family fun event with bounce toys, jumping games, double dutch and more. Admission is $2 per child. Jefferson Community Center is located at 3801 Beacon Avenue South.

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Speaking of festivals, plan ahead for El Centro de la Raza’s Sixth Annual Cinco de Mayo Celebration, to be held on Thursday, May 5 from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. at El Centro, 2524 16th Avenue South. The event will include traditional Mexican foods for sale, children’s activities, arts and crafts from local vendors, a health and services fair, and dance and musical performances. Admission is free, but donations are welcomed. For more information, call 206-957-4649 or email events@elcentrodelaraza.org.

Beacon Hill artists are among those participating in Artists For Japan, an art sale to benefit relief efforts in Japan. The sale is on Saturday, March 26 from 12 noon to 8 p.m., and again on Sunday, March 27 from 12 noon until 5 p.m. All artwork has been donated, no commissions are being paid, and all event costs are donated. All funds raised will be donated directly to the International Red Cross.

For more information including a list of participating artists, see the website. (Thanks to Beacon Hill artist Elizabeth Jameson for sending us the heads-up on this one, and for helping to organize the event.)

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Your opinions are wanted! Seattle Parks and Recreation is planning for the future by updating the Parks and Recreation Development Plan. Part of this process is identifying what should be prioritized, with the input of park users. To do this, the department is holding meetings, and hosting an online survey to get your opinions.

Mea culpa, we missed that there was a meeting right here on Beacon Hill on Wednesday. But there is another, in the North End, next Wednesday evening at Bitter Lake Community Center, 13035 Linden Avenue North. For more information about the meeting and an overview of the process, see the website.

El Centro de la Raza is offering Spanish classes again from April 12 until June 9. Classes are taught by professional native Spanish speakers in an
interactive community-based setting. Class fee is $300, and class sessions will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. For information, call 206-957-4605 or email execasst@elcentrodelaraza.org.

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Last, a nice and neighborly story from Jessica De Barros we’ve been meaning to post since last month:

Just wanted to share a good BH neighbor story—this morning I accidentally left my bank card in the BofA cash machine on Beacon Ave, and returned from a long day of skiing to a Facebook message from John at Kabayan Karinderya (the Filipino restaurant across from Valero) that he’d found my card. I was able to walk just a few blocks to get it from a good neighbor! Kudos to John and Kabayan Karinderya for being such great BH neighbors.

The Beaconettes prepare to board Link for the Light Rail/Dark Rail performance on Saturday, March 5. Photo by Dan Bennett in the Beacon Hill Blog photo pool on Flickr.

Soon, this space may be serving suds instead of sounds. Photo of the old ROCKiT space site by Jason.Well, this is news, particularly in the context of last week’s post,“Beacon Hill most needs beer bar?”. A comment from “Melissa & Robert” on that post said “ask and you shall receive… something is fermenting. anticipate suds flowing in June.” Something does indeed appear to be fermenting: A new liquor license application has been made for Tippe and Drague Alehouse at 3315 Beacon Avenue South. That is the former ROCKiT space (and previously, Buggy) location.

The applicants are Tippe and Drague LLC, Melissa Cabal and Robert McConaughy. The license type applied for is “direct shipment receiver” (which will allow them to buy beer and/or wine from federally certified wineries or breweries) and “restaurant – beer and wine” (which will allow them to sell beer and wine for on-premises consumption in conjunction with food sales). The license number is 407765.

As with all liquor license applications, if you wish to comment on the application to the Liquor Control Board, you can e-mail customerservice@liq.wa.gov.

A new pizzeria, Bar del Corso, is also planning to open this summer just a couple of blocks north of the alehouse.